£280 - £400
** LICHFIELD (STAFFS.) - "A. ROQUES" PAROLE P.O.W. LETTERS SENT "BY SECURE MEANS" TO PARIS; Fine 1 Aug. 1810 home-made envelope (with contents) from Captain Augustin Roques to his lawyer in Paris about problems with receiving letters etc., and noting that "I have to believe that my letters all reached you, having sent them all to you by secure means, like this one"; it has a fine red 1 Feb. 1811 Paris arrival backstamp and was charged "21" (heavier letter plus the 1 decime extra for an envelope). Clearly Capt. Roques had a special route for his letters to travel illegally and not via the Transport Office system. Plus similar 8 Mar./8 Apr. 1811 env. (with part printed French military stationery heading inside a flap proving that it was home-made) from the same correspondence but entirely without postal marks; containing triplicate copies of an affidavit about prize monies due to him, and of a sheet listing the 9 previous letters that he had sent by this same secure means to his lawyer. Also an unsealed 31 Jan. 1812 EL from the same correspondence with PS; "Lettre remise le 16 Mars 1812 par M. D'Anders, Capitaine" (presumably a returning POW). Rare smuggled POW mail. (3 covers) [See MFPWE, pp.135, 137 & 143.] Cross Reference: FRANCE, STAFFORDSHIRE, MILITARY - P.O.W. MAIL
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